melbourne

8 Places to Visit in Melbourne Australia

March 1, 2017 by Alicia 4 Comments

When you think of Australia, you probably think of Sydney. The Opera House and the Harbour Bridge stick out as icons. There is always talk about Melbourne vs Sydney and after visiting each of the cities, I can see how they are unique in their own ways. Melbourne has been voted as best city to live. It is definitely more affordable than Sydney (don’t even look up their house prices!) and presents more arts and culture. I guess Melbourne lost some points because the weather can go from cold to rain to warm. We experienced the cold front the week we stayed and then when we returned 2 weeks later for a couple days, it was quite warm. As far as the weather goes though, it doesn’t get into the 40s (talking Celsius and over 100F) as much as Sydney. However, for me, I really like Sydney because of the harbour and the beaches and just all the water. Melbourne has St Kilda beach but it is about a 45 minute ride out of the city.

Anyway, I did enjoy my week in Melbourne and also passing through for a couple days after our campervan travels. I think Melbourne is a great city to walk through. There are honestly so many little alleyways with cute cafes and street art to look at. While you can Google search a place to eat, sometimes it is more fun to just take a walk and see what you find. The little places don’t always have websites with menus and walking is a great way to experience the city and culture.

My list of activities around the city range from FREE to just over $30 a person. All prices listed are adult prices. Some of the activities may have kids admission free while others may be a small fee.

Melbourne Free walking tour (Donations recommended)

Start with this on your first day if you can. You can Google “Melbourne Free Walking tour” and you will find where to meet a guide. We actually just happened upon a tour guide when passing by the State Library on our second to last day. They wear bright green shirts so you can’t miss them. The tour is about 2.5 hours, but you do get a short 15 minute break at the Queen Victoria shopping centre which has a food court so you can grab a quick snack. The tour took us through a few gardens, in front of the Royal Exhibition Building, brunch spots, arcades (basically a shopping center) and background on street art.

Melbourne Museum ($14 pp)

At $14 a person (and kids free), you can’t miss out on this museum! When I say we spent ALL DAY, open to close, at this museum, I am not kidding! I think we read and made it through most of the exhibits. It offers a lot of history on Melbourne, such as the gold rush period and also exhibits on people of Melbourne who fought in the world wars. With only 2 levels, you would think going through the museum would be quick, but if you take your time, you can easily spend the day there. If you have kids who are less interested in reading the exhibits, they also have a kid friendly play/museum area where you can hang out. I thought that was a great idea as well. Besides eating out (across the street) for lunch though, we spent a good 6 hours here.

The Royal Exhibition Building ($10 pp)

Weekdays at 2pm, there are tours of the inside of the Royal Exhibition Building, assuming no private events are happening. Tickets can be purchased from the Melbourne Museum. It is best to give the museum a call in the morning to see if tickets will be available that afternoon before making the trek over there, unless you are staying close. Again, the cost is low and I found the tour really interesting. It is a short 45-60 minute tour but just getting the opportunity to go inside this grand exhibition hall was cool. This is one of the few exhibition buildings built in the 1800s that is still used for its original purpose. However, what remains is only maybe a third or less of what it used to be, but it is great to see the painting restored and hear about its uses over the century.

Old Melbourne Gaol ($25 pp)

A bit pricey compared to the last two activities mentioned, but still a cool part of Melbourne history. The jail was built in the mid 1800s and is one of the few buildings remaining from that time period. It housed criminals who were dangerous and some who were mentally ill. It also has the story of Ned Kelly, a bushranger, who you will hear a lot about as you learn Australian history and if you tour around Melbourne. Also included with the tour is an interactive tour through the City Watch House, where you get to experience being arrested.

Melbourne zoo ($32 pp)

While we didn’t go to the zoo, I will still put this on the list of things to do in Melbourne. It was mostly due to cost that we decided to not go and since we have visited zoos in other Australian cities. If Melbourne is one of your few city stops in Australia, I would definitely check out the zoo. Maybe next time I come back to Melbourne I will check it out.

State Library (Free exhibits)

The State Library is another beautiful building from the mid 1800s which houses a reading room that reminds me of the Library of Congress in Washington DC, only on a smaller scale. You can learn more about the library’s history, Ned Kelly and Melbourne history at their free exhibits inside along the balconies. This also gives you a great view of the reading room. Just remember, you are in a library, so be quiet as you go through.

Queen Victoria night market ( Wednesday night – summer months)

This is unique to the summer months which are November to February for Australia. The Queen Victoria market, located on the corner of Queen St and Victoria St (not too difficult to remember) is a night market where you can shop, get dinner, drinks and dessert. There is all kinds of different food, you are sure to find something you like. From seafood, Mexican, bbq, Greek and French cuisines. We were lucky enough to go twice to the market since when we came back through Melbourne it happened to be a Wednesday night we were staying. I must say, the French Nutella crepe was amazing!! We also had some great gyros, bbq and alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages.

Young and Jackson’s bar

I don’t usually like bars as they can be loud and crowded plus I don’t really drink. Young and Jackson’s is more sophisticated and we went in the afternoon instead of the evening so it wasn’t that busy. I liked the atmosphere. I think their rooftop cider bar probably attracts a younger crowd, but usually you find an older crowd during the day here. One thing that makes the bar unique, besides its architecture, is that it holds the painting of Chloe. We learned about this bar and about Chloe while on our Melbourne walking tour and I am happy we did. There is actually a small picture of the Chloe portrait in the Melbourne Museum as well that describes the painting as “the perfect body.” Why? Because she actually has curves and isn’t photo shopped. Whether you are buying drinks or not, check out the bar. They have some pretty good food too, though it can be pricey.

I hope this list helps you to plan out your trip to Melbourne. If you are planning a trip to Australia, you can also check out my Sydney post. After all, you will want to visit both cities and compare them for yourself.

More posts to come about Adelaide and Uluru as well.

What place is next on your travel bucket list?

It’s a Small World MIMM #104

February 13, 2017 by Alicia Leave a Comment

Today our week in Melbourne comes to an end and we pick up our campervan to head to explore the Great Ocean Road and the outback for a couple weeks. We enjoyed our campervan and the convenience of it in New Zealand so we decided to rent one for Australia. I won’t lie, I have enjoyed the week in the same place, but I think it is time to get moving again and see more. Melbourne is a great city and I will get to more about that in another post.

This weekend we squeezed in remaining tours and did lots of walking through Melbourne to soak everything up. Joining up with Katie today for MIMM.

Friday included a tour of the Old Melbourne Gaol (jail) and walking through the State Library.

Saturday I actually got to sleep in for the first time since our arrival. I have been going to 7am workout classes during the week and my body was happy to have a break this weekend because my legs were soooo sore. It was a relaxed morning and we headed out around 10am. We had plans to take a trolley to a shopping center but then saw the schedule that they weren’t running. Then we noticed there were free walking tours of Melbourne, so we hopped into that tour. I wish we had discovered that earlier in the week, but it was great for our last weekend. We then saw the trolleys going which was confusing, but we were happy with our tour.

At 10:30am, our walking tour began. We started at the State Library and then made our way to the Old Melbourne Gaol that we visited Friday. Our tour guide, Laura, gave a brief history about the jail, being built in the 1840s (one of the few remaining buildings from that time, since Melbourne was settled around 1835 by the British). We also heard more of the story of Ned Kelly (there are a few movies about him and the Kelly gang) executed in the Melbourne jail.

From there we headed to the Carlton gardens, getting a glimpse of the Royal Exhibition Building again. We then walked to the old Parliament building and the Princess Theater which has a Victorian design. Then through China Town (the oldest standing China Town as the original oldest was San Francisco but that burned down at one point). We took a quick break at the Queen Victoria shopping area which has a food court, so we got some sushi rolls and I got a Mrs. Field’s cookie.

The second half of the tour took us through some of the Melbourne art streets and down little alleys with a bunch of cafes popular for brunch. Brunch is a big thing in Melbourne and so is coffee. While there are a couple Starbucks around, apparently Melbournians prefer café shop coffees and some Starbucks have even had to close with not enough business. There are lots of areas where walls are painted by Graffiti artists, but it is totally legal. The businesses allow an artist to get a permit and paint their walls. You can tell Melbourne is known for their art and culture.

We ended the tour along the Yarra River. The tour was 3 hours long and I successfully hit my 10,000 steps for the day. After the tour, we hopped on the trolley for a few stops back to the State Library and quickly walked over to the Carlton Gardens again. We got tour tickets for the 2pm Royal Exhibition Building.

Royal Exhibition Building Melbourne — inside the Royal Exhibition Building

The building is still used for exhibitions and even for RMIT (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology)’s exams. It was weird to see a picture of rows of desks lined up in the building. The building was built in the 1880s and during the 1900s parts of the building were torn down and some burnt down. There actually used to be an aquarium on the east side as well as a ballroom. Beginning in 1988, the building underwent major restoration and took about 12 years to complete. They actually had someone come in to peel away layers of paint and match original colors and designs. The building looks amazing and it is so huge. It is weird to imagine that what stands today is only maybe a quarter of what used to be of the exhibition.

As we exited from the tour, I noticed a guy wearing a Northwestern shirt. I asked him “do you go to Northwestern?” He said “yes I graduated in December 2016.” We got to talking for a bit after the tour and I was telling him how I grew up in Evanston and that Northwestern was like my backyard. He is traveling for 6 weeks and heading to New Zealand soon, so we told him about all the cool places we went in New Zealand and how you can never have enough time. It was really cool to find someone that knows the area where I grew up and the guy was just shocked that he met someone from the Evanston area. Our talk pretty much made his day and he plans to look for a job in Chicago when he returns to the states. Pretty cool highlight of the day and goes to show just how small the world is.

After we parted, Brian and I had to figure out what to do next. We just spent 4 hours in tours and didn’t even have a proper lunch. Since it was already 3, I wanted something snack like. We decided to head on the City trolley we planned to take originally in the morning and hop off near Flinder’s station to go to Young and Jackson Bar. Our tour guide had mentioned it because it holds the painting Chloe (the naked lady). We arrived and headed to Chloe’s room where we did indeed see the giant portrait of Chloe.

Brian got a beer and we shared a plate of dips to start. Then as Brian searched the menu, he saw a mojito listed that we had to try, seeing as we try mojitos at different restaurants. With the mojito we decided to get 2 sliders, chicken for me and some calamari for Brian.

Everything was very good and I felt comfortable in the classy bar room. It was quiet so we could chat and simply enjoy. I almost count it as an early Valentine’s day celebration, since we don’t know where exactly we will be then.

Around 5 we headed back to the hotel. I prepared sweet potato and Brussel sprouts to roast in the oven. They took about 20 minutes and were so delicious!! We have been keeping veggies simple with just throwing together salads and as much as I love those, I missed having brussels and sweet potatoes. They also paired perfectly with the rest of our leftover pork.

Once we hit our food coma for the night, we relaxed a bit and then headed up to the hot tub on the roof. There were about 6 people already in the hot tub and we enjoyed chatting with some other travelers for a couple hours. Before we knew it, it was 9pm, and I was getting tired and turning into a prune in the hot tub. We headed back downstairs to get ready for bed and I enjoyed writing and reading for a bit. It was a successful busy day with lots of socializing which was nice.

Sunday was a less busy day. I enjoyed sleeping in again and then in the morning, Brian and I headed to the Old Treasury building (another building we found out thanks to our Saturday tour). We saw the volts and learned more about the gold rush era from the 1850s to 1860s in Victoria. Since the Treasury building wasn’t constructed until the end of the 1850s, it wasn’t completed until about 1862 when the gold findings slowed down, so they do not actually know if much gold was kept in the vaults. However, the building remains a beautiful piece of history and it is nice that they have a free museum.

By the time we finished there, it was about noon, so we walked in search for lunch. We decided to go to Chinatown. I got a cucumber salad and dumplings while Brian got some soup, a chicken dish and fried rice. We split the rice and we were both stuffed before all the food was gone. We took the rest back to the hotel and it worked out to be for our last dinner so we didn’t need to buy food.

In the afternoon we headed down by the Yarra River and checked out the Sustainability Fair going on. Then we headed to the ACMI (Australian Cinema for the Moving Image). They have a few free galleries you can check out about motion pictures developing over time and gaming from early Nintendo to current PlayStation games. It was a cool exhibit and I learned about a few TV shows and Movies that involved Australian people. One such TV show was Bananas in Pyjamas. Movies include Legally Blonde and Babe.

From there we quickly checked out Melbourne Central which is a food court and shopping center. We discovered Cupcake Central in the food court. They had regular size and mini size. We opted for 2 mini sized cupcakes which were quickly eaten (after a photo of course).

In the evening, we relaxed, finding some movies on tv, Matilda and Blended and ate our leftovers for dinner. We also stopped by the bar next to our hotel since we got free drink coupons and played a couple rounds of pool.

It was a good weekend and then it was time to pack up again. Time to hit the road for a couple weeks and continue seeing more of Australia.

What did you do this weekend?

SuperBowl Monday In Melbourne: MIMM#103

February 6, 2017 by Alicia Leave a Comment

Hello everyone!! Coming at you from Melbourne now.

It’s already Monday here and we just finished watching the Super Bowl. Wow that was a crazy game. I am not very into sports, not even the superbowl, but Brian wanted to head to a bar and watch the game. So it’s superbowl Monday here and the bar opened at 7:30am for the 10:30am kick off time (local time). We got there right when the kick off started. The bar had American food specials, like nachos, chilli dogs, and wings. Since it was also breakfast time here, they had Hotcakes (or pancakes) too. I enjoyed some pancakes and bacon for my breakfast #2 since I ate my first breakfast 2 hours earlier.

Brian enjoyed some beer and I enjoyed 1.8 liters of water… yep in the time we were there, I got myself a jug and drank the whole jug myself. Basically I drank half a gallon of water. I needed water as I get dehydrated at times while traveling like last night on the plane. Our plane was at 9pm New Zealand time and a 4 hour flight, but we went back 2 hours so we landed around 11:30pm local Melbourne time. I slept a bit off and on, on the flight, but was happy to be in our bed at 12:30am.

Since we will be in Melbourne for a week, it gives me a chance to establish a routine. I looked up yoga studios in the area and found a yoga, pilates and barre studio a 15 min walk from our hotel. Even though I went to bed at 12:30am, I woke up at 6:30 and headed off to a pilates class at 7am. I almost didn’t find the place as I was one street off, Little Lonsdale vs Lonsdale street… but I found it in time and was happy to join a small class to start my morning. The intro offer is good for unlimited classes for 2 weeks, but I will only be around a week. I plan to do at least 5 classes, every 7am one and that brings each class to a little over $10 instead of the $25 drop in rate per class. My legs have remained strong throughout this trip so far but my arms need some work. In other words, planks were killer this morning.

So my Monday included a workout, grocery shopping, figuring out the kitchen in my hotel and watching the Super Bowl. After the half time we headed back to the hotel but found the channel on our tv in our room and I finished watching. Brian decided to nap as he didn’t sleep well so I decided to check out the free wifi in the lobby and hang out for a bit. I must say, it is nice to get back to writing. I can’t believe how many posts I came up with in the past couple days with internet again. I will likely not have much internet after this week as we will be on the road again through Australia this time, but hopefully I can pop in from time to time. I will definitely be updating Instagram.

Now it’s time to take the rest of the afternoon to plan out things to see in Melbourne. It is nice that we take a chill day every now and then. I also have to leave you with this beautiful sunset picture from right before we took off from New Zealand Sunday night.

Thanks Katie for the link up.

Did you have a Super Bowl Party?

What did you do this weekend?